Scientists are encouraged to apply for participation as scientific staff of the IODP Equatorial Pacific drilling program. Applications are welcome until Dec. 18, 2006. Equatorial Pacific is a two-expedition program to achieve the science objectives described in Proposal #626, online at http://iodp.tamu.edu/scienceops/expeditions/equatorial_pacific.html A summary describing the Equatorial Pacific program is also available on the aforementioned URL. Two USIO expeditions are tentatively scheduled for Nov.-Dec. 2007, and Sept.-Oct. 2008. Application details are online at www.iodp.org/equatorial_pacific_call_for_applications
Chikyu Completes Shimokita System Integration Testing
Deep-sea drilling vessel Chikyu returned to port on Oct. 26 after 82 days of System Integration Testing (SIT) and operational training off the Shimokita Peninsula. Five objectives, set for this round of SIT operations, were met:
Running the riser and blow-out preventer (BOP). (See photos 1 and 2 below)
Testing the emergency disconnect sequence (EDS) for the riser and BOP.
Setting and cementing casing pipes in a borehole.
Test operation of the coring systems on board Chikyu.
Basic testing of the wire line logging winch and deployment systems.
All operations were conducted successfully at water depths greater than 1,000 meters. An overseas drilling shakedown (ODS) lasting ~10 months follows the SIT and operational training. The ODS will specifically include calibration, tuning, operation, and performance of the Dynamic Positioning System (DPS); testing of the power management system; oversight of the mud circulation pumps and cuttings transfer system; and general integration of the many disparate components of the drilling and circulation systems. All aforementioned systems perform well, but require adjustment to settings, controls, and operational parameters. A fully detailed report on Chikyu’s performance is online at www.jamstec.go.jp/chikyu.
(1) Lowering the BOP through the moonpool for installation on the seafloor
Past and Future IODP Drilling Plans Feature in Eos
The Nov. 21 edition of Eos, the weekly news publication of the American Geophysical Union, features two articles about IODP activities: “Cold-Water Coral Mounds Revealed,” is authored by members of the Expedition 307 Porcupine Basin Carbonate Mounds science party. The second article, “Continental Break-Up and Sedimentary Basin Formation,” discusses strategic planning for future investigations into continental break-up and rifting that took root at an IODP international workshop recently held in Pontresina, Switzerland. Click here to read news summary of the article.
The coral mounds report discusses deep-ocean coring along the Irish Continental Margin, 150 kilometers off the shores of southwestern Ireland, where the IODP science party recovered the first complete section through to the base of a modern cold-water coral mound. Since the expedition, studies of the recovered sediment are providing insight into the initiation and growth of these structures, their role as paleoceanographic recorders, and the interpretation of fossil mounds in the geological record. The article is authored by the IODP expedition scientists; lead author is Trevor Williams of Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University, New York. An earlier article by Timothy Ferdelman, Akihiro Kano, Williams, and the Exp. 307 scientists appeared in Scientific Drilling, earlier this year. Click here to read the article.
Millard (Mike) Coffin of the University of Tokyo; Dale Sawyer of Rice University, Houston; Timothy Reston of University of Birmingham, UK; and Joann Stock of the California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, are the authors of the second article about the scientific drilling proposal that is emerging from the IODP international workshop on continental break-up and rifting. Background on the workshop is online at www.iodp.org/continental-breakup. Both Eos articles will be posted online at www.iodp.org/recently-in-the-news.
IODP scientists at CDEX and at the USIO continue planning NanTroSEIZE Stage 1 operations. NanTroSEIZE expedition pages have been uploaded on the Chikyu web pages maintained by JAMSTEC, www.jamstec.go.jp/chikyu/eng/Expedition/NantroSEIZE/index.html, and on the USIO web site, http://iodp.tamu.edu/scienceops/expeditions/nantroseize.html. Visit these links to find breakdowns of each Stage 1 expedition, along with corresponding information on proposed expedition operations; maps, dates, ports, co-chief scientists and more. The main NanTroSEIZE expedition page currently resides at www.iodp.org/NanTroSEIZE, where you can easily access the overarching scientific prospectus for NanTroSEIZE Stage 1 and the individual Complex Drilling Project Proposals.
The ECORD council chair has rotated. As of Oct. 1, the new ECORD chair is Sören Dürr, of Germany. Contact: The two vice chairs are Marcel Kullin of Switzerland, , and Raymond Schorno of the Netherlands, . According to the ECORD memorandum of understanding, the chair rotates every six months. Therefore, Raymond Schorno, the incoming vice chair, will become the council chair next April, 2007.
The second workshop on IODP achievements, sponsored by J-DESC, JAMSTEC, and ORI (Ocean Research Institute, Tokyo University) was presented in October for 47 Japanese scientists. The workshop featured the major scientific outcomes from IODP Expeditions 304, 305 (Ocean Core Complex 1 and 2), and 306 (North Atlantic 2). Reports were also given on the four recently held IODP Workshops (Fault Zone Drilling, Mission Moho, Continental Break-Up and Subseafloor Life), the Chikyu shakedown expedition, and the NanTroSEIZE drilling plan. Other news from JAMSTEC is available at www.jamstec.go.jp/jamstec-e/index-e.html.
A highlight of the AGU Fall Meeting for many participants may be the appearance of Former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, who will speak on “Climate Change: The Role of Science and the Media in Policymaking” at a special AGU lecture open to all meeting registrants. This talk will focus on effective use of scientific understanding in the policy-making process—it is not the lecture underlying Gore’s recently released film. His lecture, Session U42D, is scheduled on Thursday, Dec. 14, at 12:30–1:30 P.M. at the San Francisco Marriott Hotel, Fourth and Mission Streets, in Salon 8. Other highlights include:
Dozens of sessions on ocean drilling. Use the AGU search tool to find sessions by keywords, section, or author, www.agu.org/meetings/fm06/waisfm06adv.html, or onsite at AGU, find the definitive list at the IODP or JOI/USIO booths.
IODP Town Hall Meeting, 7:30 p.m., Dec. 14, at the San Francisco Marriott Hotel. Get the program details at www.iodp.org/education. Welcome reception at 6:30 p.m. prior to the meeting, Salon B3.
Demonstration of new IODP web portal “doorways,” designed to quickly bring the most relevant information on the site to four audiences: scientists active in IODP, scientists unfamiliar with IODP, journalists, and educators. Visitors to IODP Booth 321-325 who demo the site and take a brief survey about its content and presentation will receive a brand-new, exclusive IODP logo item.
JOI and USIO Booth 629–633
CORE Booths 620, 622, 623, and 624
Volunteers to work in the IODP booth are welcome! Interested scientists, engineers, USIO staff, and others are urged to volunteer for a two-hour shift any day during the exhibition. To see time slots available, go to www.iodp.org/education and scroll down to Conferences. You may download the sign-up sheet and then e-mail or fax your time-slot request to . The online sign-up sheet will be updated on a daily basis. All booth volunteers will receive a new IODP logo shirt.
The IODP Science Advisory Structure Executive Committee (SASEC) has approved the concept of establishing an annual IODP Topical Symposium to highlight the contributions of scientific ocean drilling in specific research areas. The inaugural symposium will present, “North Atlantic and Arctic Climate Variability.” The meeting will convene for two days in Bremen, Germany, and will include a series of invited talks and a poster session. SASEC member Gerold Wefer, professor of marine geology at University of Bremen, Germany, will lead a steering committee to organize the first symposium. Dates for the event will be determined by the end of Dec. 2006, for a mid-August 2007 symposium. Check a future edition of IODP E-News for exact dates. SASEC meeting minutes and other committee information are online at www.iodp.org/sasec.
The IODP-MI engineering web pages are now live on the IODP web portal. The new engineering content promotes the evolution of technological developments in scientific ocean drilling, describes needed technologies in IODP, and provides proponents with information on how to submit engineering development proposals to IODP-MI. Resource material includes:
IODP-MI’s Engineering Mission statement; Key Technologies, including an interactive representation of the three drilling platforms utilized by IODP; Links to all pertinent IODP Engineering Development documentation and information, including the IODP technology “road map,” information on third- party tools, proposal solicitation and submission, and key dates; plus Monthly Technology Spotlight and quick links to relevant organizations and information.
View the new engineering content by clicking on a quick link to Engineering Development on the main home page, www.iodp.org/eng. In new web portal doorways that will be demonstrated at the IODP exhibition booth at AGU (Booth #321), engineering content will be prominently available on new entry pages designed especially for scientists. Demo the new doorways, check out the engineering content, and take an online survey at the booth. Comments and suggestions are welcome and may be sent to .
IODP-MI is seeking to fill the vacancy of Science Coordinator in Sapporo, Japan. As part of an international team, the Science Coordinator will be responsible for the management and support of the IODP Science Advisory Structure (SAS), coordination and attendance of SAS meetings, management of the nurturing and review process of drilling proposals submitted to IODP and site-survey data management. To see the full job description and application information, click here. Job descriptions for vacancies at Rice University and Indiana University of Pennsylvania also are posted on the above-noted page.
Dec. 11, Shaldril Town Hall Meeting, San Francisco Marriott, 7:30 p.m. ICDP-DOSECC Town Hall Meeting, 6-7:30 p.m. (Check AGU program for location.) Dec. 14, IODP Town Hall Meeting, San Francisco Marriott Hotel 7:30 p.m. Welcome reception at 6:30 p.m. Dec. 15, Oceans ’07 Abstracts Submission Deadline. See www.oceans2007europe.org/index.cfm Jan. 2, 2007, Editorial deadline for next issue of IODPE-News Jan. 15, 2007, Abstracts Submission Deadline for EGU General Assembly. See http://meetings.copernicus.org/egu2007 Jan. 15-19, 2007 COREF (coral reef) Workshop, Okinawa-jima, Japan. See www.dges.tohoku.ac.jp/igps/iryu/COREF Feb. 15-19, 2007, AAAS Annual Meeting, San Francisco. Registration online at www.aaas.org/meetings/Annual_Meeting/01_REG/Register.shtml
One of the more significant challenges scientists face is properly informing the public and media about the importance of their research. In a session called, “Getting the Message Across: The Importance of Communicating Science to the Public,” L. Becker of the University of California, Santa Barbara, discusses his experiences with the media in conveying his research to the public. Session PA53A-07, Friday, Dec. 15, 3:10 p.m., Moscone South 309.
In another media-centric session, BBC reporter Molly Bentley presents “From Research to Radio: How to Talk to a Science Reporter.” Bentley will focus on the misunderstandings between scientists and journalists in communicating scientific research. She will discuss the frustrations reporters have in interviewing scientists, what misconceptions scientists may have about how journalists work, and what scientists should keep in mind when talking to reporters, so that both groups can work together to communicate more effectively to the public. Session PA53A-04, Friday, Dec. 15, 2:25 p.m., MCS 309. See all public affairs sessions to be presented at AGU at www.agu.org/cgi-bin/sessions5/.
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IODP E-News is a bimonthly publication of Integrated Ocean Drilling Program Management International (IODP-MI). It is produced and distributed by IODP-MI for the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program under the sponsorship of the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF), the Ministry of Culture, Education, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan, and other participating countries. Its content is based upon research supported under NSF Contract OCE-0432224.
